Fahad Babar’s unbeaten 78 helped the United States ease to a five-wicket win over Bermuda yesterday in Indianapolis.

Chasing 124 to win the US reached their target with an over to spare, as Babar clubbed Janeiro Tucker for two sixes in an over that went for 20 runs to get his side’s ICC Americas Division One Twenty20 tournament off to a strong start.

Babar’s last 25 runs came from just nine balls, and the opener hit eight fours and two sixes in his 54-ball innings.

Defeat was tough on Bermuda, who looked like they had given themselves half a chance after Christian Burgess’s unbeaten 43 helped them to a defendable 123 for seven. Burgess came to the crease with his side struggling on 53 for four after Tucker was bowled for ten by Danial Ahmed.

The Bermuda innings never got going up to that point, with openers Dion Stovell and James Celestine both falling cheaply, and OJ Pitcher’s lasting just eight balls on his return to international cricket.

David Hemp’s departure for 20, after he was stumped by Akeem Dodson off the bowling of Timil Patel, left Bermuda at 55 for five with little more than eight overs remaining.

Burgess and Delray Rawlins did their best to turn things around, but the spinner only lasted two overs before he went the same way as Hemp. Running out of partners and time, Burgess accelerated the scoring, hitting Patel for 15 in one over, as he and Jacobi Robinson put on 50 for the seventh wicket.

The fireworks that might have been expected in the final over of an innings did not come from the bat, but rather from the bowling side, who had Hammad Shahid removed by the umpires after he failed to heed two previous warnings about running on the pitch in his follow through.

Steven Taylor bowled the final five balls of the over, conceding seven runs.

In reply, the US lost Dodson early to the third ball of Stovell’s first over, and when Justin Pitcher had Taylor athletically caught by Tucker at mid-wicket for just nine, leaving the US on 38 for two, Bermuda sensed an opening.

However, their inability to get Babar out ultimately cost them, and the opener shared partnerships of 24 with Nicholas Stanford and 30 with Patel.

Tucker brought himself on to bowl with three overs remaining and took two wickets in the space of five balls to reduce the US to 94 for five, and the momentum swung back Bermuda’s way.

Babar though had the final say, and after smashing a full toss over mid-wicket for six, another in the same direction ended the game with six balls to spare.